blessed – Elevating Balance

Week 41

October 12, 2020October 12, 2020Leave a comment

I took a stroll through my garden this morning to see how everything was doing, as we near fall and cooler temperatures approach. To my delightful surprise, I discovered quite a few strawberries in my little patch! I also found a lot of Cayenne peppers if anyone has some good ideas for those. My garden inspired this week’s healthy snack, Strawberry Oatmeal Bars. YUM!

For the Strawberry Bars:

1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
3/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/3 cup light brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
6 tablespoons unsalted butter or coconut oil – melted
2 cups small-diced strawberries
1 teaspoon cornstarch
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lime juice
1 tablespoon-ish of honey

For the Vanilla Glaze (optional, but huge yes)

1/4 cup powdered sugar – sifted
1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 tablespoon milk – any kind you like

Place a rack in the center of your oven and preheat to 375 degrees F. Line an 8×8-inch baking pan with parchment paper.
In a medium bowl, combine the oats, flour, brown sugar, ginger, and salt. Pour in the melted coconut oil and stir until it forms clumps and the dry ingredients are evenly moistened. Set aside 1/2 cup of the crumble mixture, then press the rest into an even layer in the bottom of the prepared pan.
Scatter half of the strawberries over the crust. Sprinkle the cornstarch evenly over the top, then sprinkle on the lime juice and drizzle honey. Scatter on the remaining berries, then drizzle more honey. Sprinkle the reserved crumbs evenly over the top. You will have some fruit showing through.
Bake the bars for 35 to 40 minutes, until the fruit is bubbly and the crumb topping smells toasty and looks golden. Place the pan on a wire rack to cool completely (you can speed this process along in the refrigerator).
While the bars cool, prepare the glaze: In a small bowl, briskly whisk together the powdered sugar, vanilla, and milk until smooth. Feel free to add more milk if a thinner consistency is desired. Lift the bars from the pan. Drizzle with glaze, slice, and serve.

Ocean Waves

February 6, 2018February 6, 2018Leave a comment

The ebb and flow of change is sometimes hard to cope with. When the story doesn’t go as you imagined and it doesnt seem to be in your favor. It sure is hard to see the light sometimes, collecting our blessings and lessons gathered from realizations of experiences with positive or negative outcomes.

If you are currently unhappy or upset about a thought, feeling, or consequence

Change it.

Easier said then done. Although, different perspectives can drastically shift the emotion attached to particular thoughts. For instance, a lover’s quarrel seems miniscule in comparison to a friend being diagnosed with cancer. Sometimes all it takes is a change of scenery to secure a different outlook on your current situation. Sometimes I look at pictures of puppies and kitties for sale on craigslist – it always seems to make me smile. Perhaps I will sit down and watch a comedy or a documentary or a guided meditation. Today I decided to try something new….

It was both terrifying and magical to walk through the tropical forest at The Butterfly Pavilion. So scared I may step on one, yet watching them flutter around and zip past my head was breathtaking. They freaked me out when they came zooming for my head, of course it always resulted in a soft giggle to myself for being frightened of something so silly.

One of these delicate creatures landed on my journal this afternoon, while staring up at me with its glossy eyes, it smiled and reminded me to see the bigger picture. Change can be complicated, terrifying, magical, breathtaking, humbling, fast, silly, and simple all at the same time.

Butterflies are not afraid of the unknown and whimsically dance through the forecast of fear to fully live in the now. There is an innate beauty in the finishing of a process, a completion of a step, and the excitement of the unknown future. To go boldly, genuinely, and with love is the greatest gift one can give. Always keeping in mind “Everything is going to be OK in the end. If it’s not OK, it’s not the end.

❤

Contradicting Thoughts and Realizations

January 2, 2018January 2, 2018Leave a comment

I went to a CA meeting on New Year’s Eve. The gentleman sharing was 21 years old. He had 5 years clean. I instantly judged him as not credible. He didn’t have enough experience. He didn’t have enough to lose.

Then he said something that instantly made me feel terrible about my judgments. “It doesn’t matter if you hit rock bottom or not we are all here for the same reason.” We go to meetings because we have a problem, we keep it anonymous to not be judged, we all agree we need help and that we cannot stay clean doing it alone.

I felt horrible for having that initial thought, but that’s the point right? To catch ourselves if we do something wrong, recognize the error, and make it right. I realized this initial thought was silly based on one of my own beliefs. You only hit rock bottom when you die, if you are still alive there is still room for improvement. If you aren’t alive, you never have a chance to make things right. It doesn’t take a major life event to open your eyes to your addiction or a developing addiction. Sometimes all it takes is a realization that alcohol or drugs are causing you more pain then the pain you aim to escape from. Meetings are to give hope, to know you’re not alone, and something greater can help you conquer your addiction in despair.

Pain is the touchstone of spiritual growth. It is important to stop pursuing whatever your idea of perfection is, you will never be happy if you aim for such an ideal. Find beauty in the littlr things. Happiness is appreciating what you have, not getting what you want.

Sobriety is a journey not a destination. I am excited to see what 2018 has in store for me!

#alwaysgettingbetter

Om Namah Shivaya

February 27, 2017September 9, 2017Leave a comment

Maha Shivrati.
What a wonderful experience to take part in. In case you didn’t know, On this night, the northern hemisphere of the planet is positioned in such a way that there is a natural upsurge of energy in a human being. This is a day when nature is pushing one towards one’s spiritual peak. It is to make use of this, that in this tradition, we establish a certain festival which is night-long. One of the fundamentals of this night-long festival is to ensure that – to allow this natural upsurge of energies to find their way – you remain with your spine vertical – you stay awake.

Mahashivratri is very significant for people who are on the spiritual path. It is also very significant for people who are in family situations, and also for the ambitious in the world. People who live in family situations observe Mahashivratri as Shiva’s wedding anniversary. Those with worldly ambitions see that day as the day Shiva conquered all his enemies.

But, for the ascetics, it is the day he became one with Mount Kailash. He became like a mountain – absolutely still. In the yogic tradition, Shive is not worshipped as a God, but considered as the Adi Guru, the first Guru from whom the knowledge originated. After many millennia in meditation, one day he became absolutely still. That day is Mahashivratri. All movement in him stopped and he became utterly still, so ascetics see Mahashivratri as the night of stillness.

Legends apart, why this day and night are held in such importance in the yogic traditions is because of the possibilities it presents to a spiritual seeker. Modern science has gone through many phases and arrived at a point today where they are out to prove to you that everything that you know as life, everything that you know as matter and existence, everything that you know as the cosmos and galaxies, is just one energy which manifests itself in millions of ways.

This scientific fact is an experiential reality in every yogi. The word “yogi” means one who has realized the oneness of the Existence. When I say “yoga,” I am not referring to any one particular practice or system. All longing to know the unbounded, all longing to know the oneness in the Existence is yoga. The night of Mahashivratri offers a person an opportunity to experience this.

16998684-10102260760160605-2229019180723976731-n The experience I had was so energizing! Chanting, singing, dancing … Everyone takes part in bathing the Shiv Ling in several items, yogurt, honey, water, etc. This is significant for washing away the sins. This is what Shiva wanted to be bathed in. The puja ceremony entails purification with holy water and chanting, along with some other things, however, I was unable to attend the entire event because of morning commitments.

I also received a rudraksha bead at the ceremony I attended. Talk about divine timing … A personal mantra and rudraksha bead tied in perfectly to my mala making two days later. What more could a girl ask for? Blessed. I am absolutely positively blessed. Every step on the right path, in the right direction.